Storm readiness falls off

Two harmless hurricane seasons and rising costs for food and gas may be keeping many people in Mobile and Baldwin counties from preparing for a possible storm, according to emergency and health officials.

Forty-eight percent of respondents to a new Press-Register/University of South Alabama poll said they have not made any special preparations for this year's hurricane season.

A similar poll last summer indicated that 57 percent of Mobile and Baldwin residents had bought hurricane supplies. And in March 2006, a few months after Hurricane Katrina, only 14 percent of people said they had made no preparations.

"We've gone two years without anything," said Leigh Anne Ryals, director of the Baldwin County Emergency Management Agency. "Do I expect a little complacency? Yes.

"But living on the Gulf Coast, it's not too far out of anyone's mind that we live in a hurricane-prone area," she continued.

Ryals said she was actually pleased by the poll outcome, because it showed that 51 percent were beginning to prepare. "A lot of times people wait until they see something pop up off the coast of Africa or get newsworthy attention," she said.

Hurricane season traditionally runs from the beginning of June to the end of November.

The new Press-Register/USA poll of 402 adults in Mobile and Baldwin counties was conducted last Monday to Thursday. It has a margin of error of 5 percentage points.

Bert Eichold, director of the Mobile County Health Department, said that economic problems could be affecting hurricane readiness.

"It's hard, with the price of gas and the cost of food, for people to have extra dollars in their budget," he said. "Even though times are tough, I encourage others to think a little bit about hurricane season and to stock up on food, water and especially medication."

Slightly more than half of last week's poll respondents were either very or somewhat confident in the government's ability to respond to a disaster. A similar poll in August 2006 found that nearly two-thirds were confident.

Keith Nicholls, a political science professor at the University of South Alabama, conducted last week's poll. He said the declining confidence in government is likely due to recent news about things such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency deciding not to supply ice after a hurricane.

Poll results also indicate that slightly more than half the people in Mobile and Baldwin counties would ignore a mandatory evacuation order if they did not think it were necessary.

Evacuation zones in both counties are drawn broadly, following the outlines of major roads. For that reason, said Ryals, some people who are not in danger of flooding -- the most common cause of hurricane deaths -- will still be asked to evacuate.

She said that county leaders are working with state officials to modify evacuation zones to more accurately reflect who is truly in danger.

Eichold said that before ignoring an evacuation order, people should learn more about their home, such as its elevation and what codes were in place when it was built. Too often, people rely on past experiences when they decide whether to leave, he said.

"There were a lot of people in Mississippi who rode out Camille and were unpleasantly surprised when they anticipated a similar experience with Katrina," he said.

Camille was a Category 5 hurricane that struck the Mississippi coast in 1969. It killed more than 250 people and pushed water 24 feet above sea level. Katrina's storm surge reached more than 30 feet on some parts of the Mississippi coast.

Nearly all residents surveyed last week indicated that their insurance costs have risen in the past two to three years, with about half of them saying it had risen a lot.